The next park we visited was Disney Hollywood Studios, previously known as MGM Studios. This park is more known for the shows and tours more than rides, but the rides it has are pretty good. We showed up and rode on the Tower of Terror, totally beats the one in Dreamworld. You sit in your elevator, and it takes you though the hotel and shows a video about what happened to make the hotel haunted. You then go up and when you don’t expect it, they drop you a few stories then take you back up and then drop you again and again…you get the picture. We then went to see what the line was like for Aerosmith Rock and Roller Coaster, and found it was still shut. As we turned away, they opened the ride so we went in and were on it within 10 minutes or so. It is a very fast, short roller coaster that is very fun. After the rides we went up and down a few of the streets, looking at the shops and then we had lunch. Kade had a turkey leg, a HUGE turkey leg, pictures to come. After lunch we watched an animation show on how the characters are created, and then got pictures with Sorcerer Mickey and the Characters from UP. We wanted to be back at the RV to see the Friday Night NBC Family movie, which started at 8, but we were not sure of the starting time so we aimed to leave at 5.30. There is a section dedicated to the life of Walt Disney, with lots of information and memorabilia to look at, so we spent a lot of time in there. We knew we would be back the next day, so we didn’t try to rush through anything.
We got some food to take back to the RV for dinner, and headed back to watch the movie, which was great. It was about a family (mother, twins around 16 and a younger girl) who were going though some issues, and they had inherited some property and a mountain, so they went out there, and found out the uncle they had inherited it from really wasn’t dead and someone was after him and the treasure that was hidden in the mountain, the family bonded together and it all worked out ok.
The next day we headed back to Hollywood Studios to cover the rest of what we missed. We went on the Great Movie Ride (not that great really, but was ok) and did the back lot tour, saw the Indiana Jones live show, Muppets in 4D, Toy Story Midway Mania, a ride where you shoot targets and get points for doing so. We went and did an animation drawing class and drew Goofy, and then decided to get seats for the night time show of Fantasmic, which is Hollywood Studios night time show. There is limited seating capacity (5000) and they recommend getting there early for a good seat, so we got there at 7.30 for the 9pm show. We bought dinner in with us, and sat down for the wait, which went fast. The show went for 30 minutes and was great, we want to go back and see it again (which we will tomorrow night (Saturday)).
Its now Sunday, and even though rain is predicted, it looks all nice and blue and sunny outside, so we decided to go to Magic Kingdom. (Kade just interrupted and said it was overcast). We get there and it started to sprinkle. We went on the Haunted Mansion, and by the time it was over, it was still raining. People were buying ponchos, but by the time we got to a shop to buy them, it had started RAINING and we were soaking. Dripping. Wringing our hair out wet. We decided to forgo the ponchos ($7.50 each) as we were already wet and decided just to continue. The up side was, the park was nearly empty compared to how it normally is, and we went on most the rides, with very little wait (5 – 10 mins if that). We did get a few looks, but we survived until around 7, when it started to get cold. We went on Splash Mountain, as we were already wet, and then had dinner and headed back to the RV. Our clothes were very wet, as were Kade’s shoes.
Monday we decided to Resort Hop, check out some of the other resorts. We made it to two and then saw a bus for ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, another place we can get into with our passes. We catch the bus out there, when it stated to RAIN, HARD. The bus arrives, we look out, realise we can not see 5 meters in front of us, and decided to go back to the resort, as did the other family who came out with us, except they hopped off the bus for a few seconds and got drenched. We had dinner, and headed back to the RV for a movie and TV.
Tuesday we went to Epcot again and went and did a ride called Journey into Imagination with Figment the Dragon. It takes you through how imagination can work and what provokes imaginations and whatnot. From there we had some lunch and we decided to eat at the Moroccan section of the worlds fair. We decided on the lamb and chicken meal to share, which was lucky because there was enough to fill both Kade and I. After that we went to a pavilion which was called Innoventions which basically shows what direction future technology is going and what the technology is able to do in all its applications. From there we decided to head on over to the Magic Kingdom via Monorail (our first trip on the Disney monorail, and Kade has been singing the monorail song every time we have seen a monorail train go by). Once we got there we walked around and looked at the magic kingdom without torrential rain pouring down. We walked around for a bit and walked past a stall that sold drinks and ice-cream but it had a specialty drink called a pineapple float which is pineapple flavoured ice-cream in pineapple juice which is called a pineapple float. We purchased that because we had seen in almost every food guide that this was the thing to try when at the magic kingdom, and it was pretty good. After that we took a walk and though we might ride the Pirates of the Caribbean but as we approached the entrance about 20 odd meters away we could feel the air conditioning and we were cold from that distance away so we decided to skip that and continue on. From there we went and got dinner and left to be back in time for the outdoor screening of Parent Trap with Lindsey Lohan and campfire sing along with guest appearances of Chip and Dale. Kade and I toasted some marshmallows by the campfire and then once we’d had enough of that we found a spot to sit and watch the movie, just in time for it to begin to rain. But Kade and I were both prepared with raincoats and an umbrella and we watched most of the movie under the umbrella, the rain wasn’t that heavy but it persisted for about two thirds of the movie, but it was quite fun and Kade and I really enjoyed the night. We then strolled back to the RV and went to bed.
On Wednesday we slept in and decided to spend the day at the campgrounds. We headed over to the pool, had lunch and sat around the pool watching the happenings and reading. We had dinner and then prepared to head over to the sing along to eat more marshmallows and watch Snow White, which was the first feature length film Walt Disney created. We worked out that we hadn’t seen the movie in around 20 years, and really enjoyed it. It didn’t rain either which is a bonus.
On Thursday we decided to go to Typhoon Lagoon, one of the water parks. We went on the Castaway Bay, a slow floating ride around the park like Calypso Beach at Wet n Wild. What we didn’t know what that this took you underneath a waterfall (VERY COLD) and had sections where passers by could aim water guns at you and spray you. Cold once again. After that, we thought we wouldn’t go on anymore rides, as even though it was nice out, the water was cold, at least to us. We got ready to leave, but then I felt the wave pool water and it was nice and warm, so we hung out in the wave pool for nearly an hour. The wave pool puts out a 6ft wave every 3 or so minutes, which was lots of fun. After the water park, we headed back to Downtown Disney and headed back to Disney Quest for the evening.
On Friday we headed to Downtown Disney for lunch at Earl of Sandwiches, the best sandwich shop there is. We then headed to Hollywood Studios to see if we could get pictures with any characters, and we managed to see Mulan, Pinocchio, the bad guy from Aladdin and Snow White. We then headed over to Magic Kingdom to see the nightly parade/fireworks, but found out the park shut at 7pm for Grad Night, some form of graduation thing Disney does each year. So we went on a few rides and headed to Wilderness Lodge to get dinner, as the food places had shut at Magic Kingdom by then and we didn’t have a dinner place at the campgrounds where we could use our meal plan. We got dinner and headed back to the RV via the ferry. Our travels to the different lodges made us realise we prefer the RV campground and lifestyle to the hotel/resort lifestyle.
On Saturday we headed back to Hollywood Studios to see Fantasmic again and get more pics with characters. We had overheard that at 4.45 each afternoon some extra characters come out in a certain area for pictures. This is why went on Friday and got the extra characters. Today we got Snow White again, Pinocchio and Gepetto, The Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland (she didn’t like me but loved Kade) and Snow White. We also did 3 more drawing classes today, and drew Dopey, Jiminy Cricket and Bolt. We headed to line up to see Fantasmic, and got front row seats. We ate dinner while waiting and enjoyed the show again. It is a 30 show, which is based around Mickey falling asleep and having a dream. It includes images projected onto water, lights and fireworks, a huge serpent and dragon, and ends with a boat with around 40 characters coming out. We headed back to the RV around midnight.
As Sunday was our last day, we headed to Downtown Disney to use the rest of our snack credits at the Candy store and to get lunch. We bought 16 pieces of fudge, some marshmallows on Mickey Straws and some Smores. We then headed to Disney Quest again for a bit and had Earl of Sandwich for lunch. We headed into Magic Kingdom then for the night time fireworks/parade, and it started raining. Again. It seemed each time we went to Magic Kingdom it rained. We had jackets and an umbrella, so lasted the rain out again, hoping the fireworks would still be on. While it was raining we headed to see the Princess and the Fairy’s, and got our picture taken with Belle, Cinderella and Aurora, Terrence, TinkerBell and Rosetta. It was 10 past 10 when we left, and the fireworks which were supposed to be at 10 were not on so we headed to leave the park. We reached the Castle and were taking some pictures when we heard over the loudspeaker that the fireworks were about to start. We decided to stand in front of the castle for the fireworks, even though the best location was behind the castle, but we wanted the pictures. It was beautiful to see, the castle changing colour with the fireworks behind it to the commentary and music. As it was poring rain, we thought the night time parade would be canceled, so we decided to get a drink and let the fireworks crowd leave the park. We went into the Swiss Family Robinson tree house, and I thought I could see lights near Main Street. We decided to head over and see what was going on, and it was the night time parade even though it was raining. There was hardly anyone watching the parade, so we got good positions in front of the castle. Mickey posed for me to take a picture of him in front of the castle while on his float. I didn’t realise he did, but Kade saw him look at me taking pictures and he turned and posed, and held it while looking at me. Gotta love Mickey :) We left after the parade, as it was wet and we had been on all rides, and thought it was time to head home. We caught the ferry and got back to the campgrounds, it was raining, and decided to use the rest of the arcade points we had. After that, we headed to get a bus, but there was none and as it was only a 10-minute walk, we decided to walk instead of waiting. So at 1am we started walking the way we thought it was, in the rain with our umbrella. Unfortunately, we took the wrong path, and ended up somewhere…after 10 or so minutes we turned around and headed back to the bus stop to start again. A yellow bus pulled up (we needed orange) and he told us to get in and he would drop us off, even though it wasn’t his route, as we were the only people waiting. We got back and got ready to leave the next day.
On Monday we were going to head to the other water park after we checked out, but chickened out as it was a bit cold and we don’t like the cold, especially being wet and cold :) We went into Downtown Disney to have lunch, and then left Disney World. Sad times…but we will be back sometime in the future. Disney World was great.
We left Disney and headed to the outlet shops close by, they had a Disney store there, as well as a Converse store. Kade got a Disney rain jacket and I got a zip hoodie, both $35 dollars off the price they were at Disney World. We also got a blanket to go with the blanket we got at Disneyland. It was classed as the 2009 Holiday blanket (even though there is nothing on it to say 2009 or holiday) so we got it at a good discount. The Disney outlet stores are good as they have the stock marked down, the downside is (as with any outlet store really) they don't always have your size and the stock selection isn't always the best. We headed to the Converse store next, and I got a pair of Cons, low top traditional black ones, that had been made to look aged. $20. Gotta love the clearance rack :)
Kade needed new skatey shoes as his old ones of 10 years were starting to look a bit old and they got soaked at Disney and dried slightly moldy. He found a pair of Macbeth shoes, the brand is co-founded by Tom from Blink 182. After that we left the stores and headed down Florida, as we are making our way to the Keys. We stopped at a KOA around 100 miles from Everglades National Park, as our main goal was to get on the internet, blog, and plan the next part of the trip, as well as answering a stack of emails. It is now day three we are at the KOA, as I made a mistake and booked the Florida Key State Park (our next stop) for Thursday and Friday night instead of Wednesday and Thursday night. We headed to Walmart yesterday to stock up on some items, and I vowed to stick to the list I had made. We managed (well Kade managed) to do that mostly, but we saw a grill for $30, and 
We left Disney and headed to the outlet shops close by, they had a Disney store there, as well as a Converse store. Kade got a Disney rain jacket and I got a zip hoodie, both $35 dollars off the price they were at Disney World. We also got a blanket to go with the blanket we got at Disneyland. It was classed as the 2009 Holiday blanket (even though there is nothing on it to say 2009 or holiday) so we got it at a good discount. The Disney outlet stores are good as they have the stock marked down, the downside is (as with any outlet store really) they don't always have your size and the stock selection isn't always the best. We headed to the Converse store next, and I got a pair of Cons, low top traditional black ones, that had been made to look aged. $20. Gotta love the clearance rack :)
Kade needed new skatey shoes as his old ones of 10 years were starting to look a bit old and they got soaked at Disney and dried slightly moldy. He found a pair of Macbeth shoes, the brand is co-founded by Tom from Blink 182. After that we left the stores and headed down Florida, as we are making our way to the Keys. We stopped at a KOA around 100 miles from Everglades National Park, as our main goal was to get on the internet, blog, and plan the next part of the trip, as well as answering a stack of emails. It is now day three we are at the KOA, as I made a mistake and booked the Florida Key State Park (our next stop) for Thursday and Friday night instead of Wednesday and Thursday night. We headed to Walmart yesterday to stock up on some items, and I vowed to stick to the list I had made. We managed (well Kade managed) to do that mostly, but we saw a grill for $30, and 
